A - Z Challenge: I-cord

Does anyone find it amazing that it's taken me so many letters to get around to knitting?  I think I was consciously avoiding the topic.  But, I can't hold those needles still another minute.  I-cord is such a cool technique. It's the yellow rope that holds these mukluks together.  Only 3 stitches to knit per row...how easy is that?

When I first discovered it, I wanted to put it everywhere.  Since that wasn't going to work well, I've learned to be selective.  I admit to using it even when instructions call for a crocheted cord.  Oh, I-cord is just fun.  I think I could happily knit miles of it.  There are lots of video tutorials on You-tube so I'm not going to give a lesson here.  But if you've never made it - give it a try!

It doesn't have to be a tie-up kind of cord, either.  You could attach it as you make the I-cord like I did on this tool bag.  The red frame around the bag  is just a  knitted cord that ends in a loop.

Or, you could have some fun with it.  One day in a shop, I saw a very cool yarn that looked like fuzzy cocoons linked with yarn.  Apparently, you could knit a scarf that sort of looked like fur with it.  But, I thought:  I-cord.  Then I went home and tried to recreate the yarn.  Did you read in my intro that I often reinvent wheels?  Yup.  I spent hours making a string of I-cord cocoons for no other reason than to prove I could. Never did make anything with my cocoons on a string.

When I discovered I-cord, the explanation for the name was that it was Idiot-cord because it was so simple to make:  3 stitches on two dp needles and no purling!  Of course, that's not at all PC and nowadays you  usually find it in pattern instructions as 'knitted cord'.  But that kind of takes all the color out of it, so I'll continue with I-cord if only in mind - and in today's post.